'Swirly-faced paedophile' all smiles as he goes on trial in Thailand

A man alleged to be the paedophile who digitally disguised himself with a swirling pattern in obscene pictures went on trial yesterday.

Christopher Neil was arrested after a worldwide hunt which began when police managed to unscramble the face in photographs of boys being sexually abused.

At Bangkok Criminal Court yesterday, Neil denied four charges including molesting a Thai boy and distributing pornographic images of the boy and his brother.

If found guilty he could spend up to 20 years in jail.

Shackled and smiling, Neil waved to a friend and said, "How's it going?" as he entered Bangkok's criminal courthouse ahead of the trial.

He was wearing an orange prison uniform, barefoot and chained to another prisoner.

"I hope there will be justice in Thailand," he said.

Neil, who had had been teaching English in Asia, was arrested last October. Detectives in various countries had been trying to find him since German police discovered photographs on the internet three years ago of a man sexually abusing 12 boys in Vietnam and Cambodia.

Computer experts were able to "unswirl" the image of his face and Interpol issued an unprecedented appeal via the internet.

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Christopher Neil shares a laugh with prison officers as he is charged with sexual offences in Thailand today

Because the pictures are thought to have been taken in Vietnam and Cambodia, they fall outside Thai jurisdiction.

However, after Neil fled to Thailand from South Korea, two Thai brothers came forward and accused him of paying for sex when they were nine and 14.

Three charges of molesting underage children, depriving children of parental care and restraint of freedom are connected to the nine-year-old boy. Neil is also charged with distributing pornographic images of the brothers.

The trial was adjourned to June 2, the earliest date when the judge and lawyers were available. Neil did not ask for bail.

He was caught in in the northeastern province of Nakhon Ratchasima, 160 miles from Bangkok, after a trace was put on the mobile phone of his 25-year-old transvestite boyfriend.

The boyfriend, the only friend who visits Neil regularly in jail, turned up at court yesterday when he told reporters that he did not believe the "friendly and fun guy" was a paedophile.

The boyfriend, who identified himself as Ohm, said: "He never did anything to my nieces or nephews when I took him to see my family.

"He was a romantic man taking me to places like islands and beaches. I believe he did not do it. I am not seeing anyone else and I will wait for him until he is free."

Thai police said Neil could be extradited once he had served any sentence. Cambodia and Vietnam may also want to question him.